As the internet becomes a dominant sales channel in China, virtual key opinion leaders (KOLs) are becoming key for brands, says marketing expert Arnold Ma to the Jing Daily. As patriotism becomes an issue for global brands in China, they have to be careful in picking those virtual KOLs, adds Ma.Read More →
The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg are increasingly behaving like biased activists when it comes to China, says business analyst Shaun Rein at the state-owned CGTN. “I’m a big believer that they should have critics of China quoted, but then they should also have supporters of China quoted,” he argues.Read More →
Nationalistic sentiments at the recent National People’s Congress (NPC) triggered off proposals to abolish English translations on all government-related events in China. London-based author Zhang Lijia explains why that is the wrong move, and why learning English is still important, also for Chinese, at the South China Morning Post.Read More →
Getting into hot water with China’s consumers, its government or both happens regularly to foreign brands. Business analyst Shaun Rein uses the latest NBA-upheaval to explain how those boycotts work, and how foreign brands can deal with them, according to the Marketplace.Read More →
Quality, price and value drive China’s consumers, not patriotism, says business analyst Shaun Rein in the LA Times. They might say something patriotic, but that is not key for their purchases, although China’s media might suggest nationalism is most important for consumers.Read More →
Journalist Ian Johnson attended China’s National Day celebrations in Beijing and noted – apart from the military parade and obligatory propaganda, the crowd was different from earlier celebrations. “Tuesday’s crowd was different. It was made up of university professors, scientists, administrators, bureaucrats and people who had made some sort of contribution to the state. They weren’t props but excited participants who expected to remember this day,” he writes in the New York Times.Read More →
One hundred years ago students protested in Beijing for patriotism and democracy. President Xi Jinping has jumped on the centennial anniversary by praising the patriotism of the May Fourth protests. Commentator Zhang Lijia notes that he ignored that democracy was an inherent part of its legacy, she writes in the South China Morning Post.Read More →
The official trade war between the US and China seems to be entering its end game. But that does not mean the hostilities will end. Making sense out of what the world’s first and second-largest economies will do will only be slightly easier. A few speakers at our office might be able to help you out.Read More →
Trump’s trade war against China is backfiring, says financial analyst Sara Hsu at the China Focus. While ideologically the trade war makes sense, US consumers and companies pay a high price, she says.Read More →
Dolce&Gabbana was the latest fashion brand to feel the growing power of picky Chinese consumers, but it will certainly not be the last one, says consumer analyst Ben Cavender to the New York Times. “The reality is this is probably going to kill growth for them,” he said on D&G.Read More →
Fashion brand Dolce&Gabbana got blamed for racism by its Chinese customers after using a promotional video, celebrities withdrew from a show planned for Wednesday in Shanghai and the brand withdrew its goods. The damage to the brand will be lasting, says branding expert Shaun Rein, author of The War for China’s Wallet: Profiting from the New World Order to AP.Read More →
The political debate in the US has become rough, and some fear a return of McCarthyism from the 1950s when everybody linked to Russia feared prosecution. Now China too has come into the equation, and political methods move into the same direction, says China analyst Kaiser Kuo to the US World&News Report.Read More →